A Homestead high school student was recognized today/Thursday for winning second place in a documentary competition from C-SPAN.
Homestead senior Leah Steup’s documentary, called ‘Kids First: Indiana’s Child Welfare System,’ focused on places where the system needs improvement.
Steup said she wanted to tell the story because of a friend who’d had a tough experience in the system.
“If we don’t tell these stories through a medium like film, like video, where a lot of people will hear about it, then nothing is really gonna change," she said.
C-SPAN’s Student Cam competition is an annual video documentary competition that invites students to tell critical stories about issues that affect their communities. This year, C-SPAN asked students to address the theme; Your message to the President: What issue is most important to you or your community?
Steup’s 5-minute documentary aired on C-SPAN on April 7. A representative for the network visited Steup at Homestead to air the documentary for her fellow media students and present her with several videos from various officials congratulating her, such as Gov. Mike Braun and Mayor Sharon Tucker.
Steup was one of only two Indiana students to place in the competition, the other one from Penn High School in Mishawaka. Steup received a cash prize of $1,500 which she said she intends to use to purchase a new laptop before beginning college. After graduating, she plans to study film and TV at Huntington University.
Steup's documentary, as well as the congratulatory videos and messages from state officials, are available on C-SPAN's website.
